French zero-emission mobility platform Hype will be launching a taxi service in Brussels soon, meaning locals and tourists in the capital can opt for 100% electric, battery-powered and/or hydrogen-powered taxis to get around.
Hype's zero-emission taxi service will soon be rolled out in Brussels. The company has been delivering the same service in Paris since 2015, enabling over two million people to move around the French capital more sustainably and consequently becoming one of the major players in the taxi market in the Paris region.
Its launch in Brussels marks the first time the zero-emission taxi service will be available outside France. To mark the occasion, it will also be offering the first hydrogen-powered taxis in Brussels suitable for transporting people with reduced mobility.
"The arrival in Brussels is the result of several years of preparation, notably in conjunction with local taxi operators, to gain a thorough understanding of drivers' needs," Mathieu Gardies, CEO and Founder of Hype, said.
People who are living or staying in Brussels can use the Hype mobile application to order a 100% electric, battery-powered and/or hydrogen-powered taxi "at no extra cost", the company explained, meaning the price for this type of taxi is the same as for a fossil-fuelled one. "This makes it possible for customers and drivers to switch en masse to these solutions."
No polluting taxis after 2025
To attract Brussels' taxi drivers to join the company, Hype plans to set up new stations around the Belgian capital where the cars can be charged. In an earlier pilot project with hydrogen taxis, the drivers always had to refuel in Halle, on the outskirts of the capital, making it highly impracticable.
The expansion, which will see Hype launch in other cities at a later date, is supported by the European Union to help reduce car emissions in capitals. The Brussels Region itself is also looking to tackle pollution by the sector, aiming to stop registering new taxi vehicles from 1 January 2025 if they emit CO2 – a measure vehemently opposed by taxi drivers.
"Hype is determined to make this objective achievable, as it has done in Paris, which by the end of 2024 will have more than 1,500 hydrogen-powered electric taxis and several hundred battery-powered electric taxis."
